HomeDiagramsDatabaseMapsForum About
     

Go Back   SkyscraperPage Forum > Photography Forums > My City Photos


Reply

 
Thread Tools Display Modes
     
     
  #1  
Old Posted Oct 29, 2008, 3:13 AM
Steely Dan's Avatar
Steely Dan Steely Dan is offline
devout Pizzatarian
 
Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: Lincoln Square, Chicago
Posts: 29,605
Cool Urban kayaking - the Chicago River: south branch

well, since my north branch tour was so well received, i decided to to a
south branch tour before the paddling season ended. once again i put in at
the mouth of the river by LSD, i then paddled down the main branch to wolf
point, then turning left down the south branch. i paddled all the way south
and west to ashland, where i then paddled the full length of bubbly creek up
and down, then came back to the south branch and headed west into the
chicago sanitary and ship canal, getting as far west as the kedzie bridge, i
then turned around and paddled back to the public boat ramp at western
avenue. then i folded up my boat, slung it on my back and hoofed it over to
the orange line stop in mckinley park and rode the el back home. all in all it was
a 11 mile, 5 hour kayak exploration extravaganza.

the weather this past saturday was absolutely terrible for photography, but
i've done my best to get these as good as i could. the real intent is to show
the river as it is anyway, so the gloomy overcast kinda works with the
heavily industrial south branch.

in case you missed, here is a link to the north branch thread:
http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=159531


map




1. i was treated to the LSD bridge opening up for some sailboats just before i left.




2. trump with his head in the clouds




3. home sweet home




4. i just absolutely LOVE 55 west wacker. i really, really do




5. 353 north clark rises behind the westin




6. it's really best to just not talk about it




7. beaux arts and art deco together at last




8. 300 north lasalle stretches skyward




9. last time we went right on the north branch, this time we're headed left on
the south branch. SCROLL------------------------------------->




10. this is a cute little train switching house left from the olden days




11. ivy, bricks, water and glass - the elements of the city.




12. city texture




13. the boeing building from the water




14. the buildings of gateway center




15. insull's magnificent throne, the civic opera building




16. architectural surgery at the medium old mercantile exchange




17. i don't remember the name of this one, but it's quite nice. sears in the clouds behind




18. looking straight-up




19. modern generica at gateway center




20. looking back north down the south branch canyon




21. this one was recently reclad. looks pretty good.




22. tall




23. new condo towers along wells




24. looking back, the old post office on the left




25. my spidey sense is tingling, were about to experience some coolness




26. bertrand goldberg's wonderful river city





27. urban corridor




28. looking back towards the textures of the loop




29. the massive mixed-use roosevelt collection complex under construction




30. i don't know what it is, but it's cool, so i like it




31. the new southside skyline pano SCROLL------------------------->




32. what's my avatar doing floating in the river?




33. YES! YES! YES! THIS ROCKS!




34. NO! NO! NO! DON"T STOP ROCKING!




35. echos of big john. do you think fazlur might have ever kayaked down the river for inspiration?




36. the 18th street bridge. we're getting close to chinatown




37. beautiful ping tom park with an orange line train rumbling by in the background




38. a groovy old loft building opposite ping tom park




39. urban texture back over my shoulder




40. one museum park looms over ping tom park




41. it's official: steel is the most kick-ass building material of all time!




42. steel, steel, steel......... i like steel




43. these railroad bridges just rule. fortunately, we'll see several more along the tour.




44. the canal street bridge



45. lawrence's fisheries, a locally famous south branch eatery




46. the cermack bridge, this one is cool because it's one of the last rolling lift bridges.





47. a cool old loft building




48. the ozinga concrete plant




49. the dan ryan expressway bridge floats high above the river because
expressways can't have draw bridges




50. underneath the dan ryan.




51. the halsted street bridge




52. the fisk power plant taking in a barge load of coal




53. a cool little building at the fisk plant. look at the care they used to take
even with simple little utilitarian industrial buildings.




54. industry is cool




55. i don't know what tower this is, but i liked the massive antenna




56. your guess is as good as mine




57. another barge full of coal heading up to the fisk plant. loomis bridge in the background




58. this is one of the long slips that stretches north from the south branch




59. another long slip. this was the lumber center of the world back in the 19th century




60. and now we come to the junction with bubbly creek. the creek is off to the
left, the south branch continues on to the right. we're gonna detour here and
come back to the south branch after exploring bubbly creek. SCROLL ------->




61. the entrance to bubbly creek




62. this is the 1st of 4 bridges right in a row at the start of bubbly creek.
this is a cool old railroad bridge, then there is the CTA orange line, then the
stevenson expressway, and finally archer avenue.




63. yes virginia, bubbly creek still bubbles to this very day




64. beneath the quad bridges




65. orange line stop is close by. good to know




66. bubbly creek is a really peaceful and placid body of water. how far it's
come from the days when it was choked with rotting animal carcasses




67. newish single family home development on the banks of bubbly creek




68. more newish homes




69. nice loft building




70. i couldn't figure out what this building was, but my guess is water treatment facility




71. this is the end of bubbly creek at it exists today. we gotta turn around
and head back north to the south branch




72. the 35th street bridge crossing bubbly creek




73. sears looms over bridgeport homes




74. canal origins park at the mouth of bubbly creek




75. a skyline view




76. the sailboats from earlier in the morning finally caught up to me at ashland




77. the damen bridge. this one is not as cool as the damen bridge on the north branch




78. abandoned grain elevator decorated with graffiti




79. at damen, the river technically ends and the chicago sanitary & ship canal begins





80. a big old barge





81. yes! more coolness dead ahead




82. yes! coolness!




83. i'm speechless




84. industry




85. the california bridge. it's a basculle bridge, but it has no bridge control towers. odd.




86. more bridge awesomeness. this time a swing bridge!




87. what a beauty




88. a detail shot of the swing axle pylon




89. a bridge too far. there was another cool swing bridge about a half-mile down
the river, but at this point, i've paddled about 11 miles and i'm just simply out
of gas. so i turned around just past kedzie and headed back to western




90. a neat little railroad bridge across the mouths of one of the side slips. i
have no idea how this bridge opened, but there's some mechanical stuff you
can see on the left.




91. industry




92. industry




93. the public boat ramp and launch dock at western




94. thanks for coming along on the paddle with me, until next time...........
__________________
"Missing middle" housing can be a great middle ground for many middle class families.

Last edited by Steely Dan; Oct 29, 2008 at 3:27 PM.
Reply With Quote
     
     
  #2  
Old Posted Oct 29, 2008, 3:34 AM
Thundertubs's Avatar
Thundertubs Thundertubs is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Jersey City, NJ
Posts: 2,921
YES!!!
Awesome industrial/infrastructural thunder down that way. The shot under the 18th St bridge is really cool.

-

For my money, overcast is best for photography. No harsh shadows or glare like on a cloudless day.

-

That's gross that the creek still bubbles.
__________________
Be magically whisked away to
Chicago | Atlanta | Newark | Tampa | Detroit | Hartford | Chattanooga | Indianapolis | Philadelphia | Dubuque | Lowell | New England
Reply With Quote
     
     
  #3  
Old Posted Oct 29, 2008, 4:20 AM
SuburbanNation SuburbanNation is offline
Closed account
 
Join Date: Jan 2006
Posts: 1,116
i just came blood.

although i hate your hat.
Reply With Quote
     
     
  #4  
Old Posted Oct 29, 2008, 4:38 AM
jboy560's Avatar
jboy560 jboy560 is offline
Cap ou pas cap?
 
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: Chicago, baby!
Posts: 251
will you take me with you next time? PLEEEASE?

SuburbanNation...you should get that checked out...
__________________
myspace.com/jboy560
Reply With Quote
     
     
  #5  
Old Posted Oct 29, 2008, 4:45 AM
bnk bnk is offline
BANNED
 
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: chicagoland
Posts: 12,741
Dan

Without getting over emotional and weepy for I had a great post about your new thread but was blocked because of too many peeps on the line.

The point is is that I like this south side photo blog even better than your journey north that was so popular.

I hope you get my drift.
Reply With Quote
     
     
  #6  
Old Posted Oct 29, 2008, 5:25 AM
xzmattzx's Avatar
xzmattzx xzmattzx is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Wilmington, DE
Posts: 6,331
Great pictures. I remember seeing that train-switching house while on a boat tour, but I thought it might have been a leftover regular house.

By the way, Tonawanda, New York (near Buffalo) was the largest lumber port in the world by the 1890s, passing Chicago. I know that because my mom is from there.
Reply With Quote
     
     
  #7  
Old Posted Oct 29, 2008, 5:58 AM
ltsmotorsport's Avatar
ltsmotorsport ltsmotorsport is offline
Here we stAy
 
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: Parkway Pauper
Posts: 8,064
These tours of the river are boss.


So is this picture.

__________________
Riding out the crazy train

Last edited by ltsmotorsport; Oct 29, 2008 at 6:27 AM.
Reply With Quote
     
     
  #8  
Old Posted Oct 29, 2008, 6:35 AM
Jibba's Avatar
Jibba Jibba is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Chicago
Posts: 2,907
Positively kick-ass! Thanks for grabbing all of these photos (I've photographed from a canoe a couple of times and found it quite difficult--maybe a kayak is more stable, though). Those bridges are...amazing.



^This thing kind of looks like the weird/giant bomb that that farmer had in a shed in Hot Fuzz...good thing you didn't touch it.
Reply With Quote
     
     
  #9  
Old Posted Oct 29, 2008, 12:55 PM
harryc's Avatar
harryc harryc is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Oak Park, Il
Posts: 14,989
Power Plant



Thanks for all the bridges.
__________________
Harry C - Urbanize Chicago- My Flickr stream HRC_OakPark
The man who trades freedom for security does not deserve nor will he ever receive either. B Franklin.
Reply With Quote
     
     
  #10  
Old Posted Oct 29, 2008, 1:29 PM
Cbautz's Avatar
Cbautz Cbautz is offline
Senior Bezerkeleyite
 
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: Chicago
Posts: 972
Great Tour Dan. This is a real treat. I love the bridge pics. So much to explore down there. Thanks!
__________________
Architect and Urban Planner
Reply With Quote
     
     
  #11  
Old Posted Oct 29, 2008, 3:08 PM
i_am_hydrogen i_am_hydrogen is offline
tilted & shifted
 
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Chicago
Posts: 4,608
Jasper would approve of all this paddlin'
__________________
flickr
Reply With Quote
     
     
  #12  
Old Posted Oct 29, 2008, 3:22 PM
brickell's Avatar
brickell brickell is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: County of Dade
Posts: 9,379
Love the river tours. Can't wait for more.
__________________
That's what did it in the end. Not the money, not the music, not even the guns. That is my heroic flaw: my excess of civic pride.
Reply With Quote
     
     
  #13  
Old Posted Oct 29, 2008, 3:56 PM
Steely Dan's Avatar
Steely Dan Steely Dan is offline
devout Pizzatarian
 
Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: Lincoln Square, Chicago
Posts: 29,605
thanks for the compliments everyone.



Quote:
Originally Posted by brickell View Post
Love the river tours. Can't wait for more.
well, the next paddle tour on my list is the rivers of milwaukee. i'm free this saturday, but the forecast in milwaukee says a high of 48. that doesn't sound like fun for 5 or more hours of paddling. however, if we do get a warm-up weekend (upper 50s or better) sometime in november, i think i'm gonna pull the trigger and just do it. if not, my next adventure is gonna have to wait until spring
__________________
"Missing middle" housing can be a great middle ground for many middle class families.
Reply With Quote
     
     
  #14  
Old Posted Oct 29, 2008, 4:22 PM
brickell's Avatar
brickell brickell is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: County of Dade
Posts: 9,379
Is the kayak lake worthy?
__________________
That's what did it in the end. Not the money, not the music, not even the guns. That is my heroic flaw: my excess of civic pride.
Reply With Quote
     
     
  #15  
Old Posted Oct 29, 2008, 4:39 PM
Steely Dan's Avatar
Steely Dan Steely Dan is offline
devout Pizzatarian
 
Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: Lincoln Square, Chicago
Posts: 29,605
Quote:
Originally Posted by brickell View Post
Is the kayak lake worthy?
not really. it's just a little 10' fold-up kayak that's intended for flat water use. the lake can occasionally be really flat when the winds are right, but conditions can also change real fast out on the lake, so i'm hesitant to test it out.

but i recently passed my sailing certification with Sail Chicago, so as soon as the sail boats go back in the water next spring, i'll have lake sailboat access whenever i want, so expect some lake perspective sailboat photo tours next year.
__________________
"Missing middle" housing can be a great middle ground for many middle class families.

Last edited by Steely Dan; Oct 29, 2008 at 5:40 PM.
Reply With Quote
     
     
  #16  
Old Posted Oct 31, 2008, 12:59 AM
SkokieSwift SkokieSwift is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Santa Monica
Posts: 175
Steely, this was an awesome tour. Great shots of bridges to somewhere.
Reply With Quote
     
     
  #17  
Old Posted Oct 31, 2008, 1:27 AM
ikcyzrteip's Avatar
ikcyzrteip ikcyzrteip is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Chicago, Illinois
Posts: 199
AWESOME.

if you like industry you should do the calumet into NW indiana, that would be awesome. if the heavily polluted waters dont eat through your kayak. lol.
__________________
-Ikcyzrteip
Reply With Quote
     
     
  #18  
Old Posted Oct 31, 2008, 3:02 AM
plinko's Avatar
plinko plinko is offline
them bones
 
Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: Santa Barbara adjacent
Posts: 7,387
Awesome and unique hobby. Thanks for the new perspective on things.

How about a River Rouge trip in Detroit?
__________________
Even if you are 1 in a million, there are still 8,000 people just like you...
Reply With Quote
     
     
  #19  
Old Posted Oct 31, 2008, 3:11 AM
TinChelseaNYC TinChelseaNYC is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: New York City
Posts: 803
That's one of the best threads EVER! Wow!
Reply With Quote
     
     
  #20  
Old Posted Oct 31, 2008, 3:36 AM
Runt Runt is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Bible Belt...lol
Posts: 86
That was just a great follow-up to your Northern trek.
Look forward to more.
Reply With Quote
     
     
This discussion thread continues

Use the page links to the lower-right to go to the next page for additional posts
 
 
Reply

Go Back   SkyscraperPage Forum > Photography Forums > My City Photos
Forum Jump


Thread Tools
Display Modes

Forum Jump


All times are GMT. The time now is 8:34 AM.

     
SkyscraperPage.com - Archive - Privacy Statement - Top

Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.7
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.